Category Archives: supernatural

Battling Darkness

Battling Darkness is a documentary from 2013 which takes a look at the way the church deals with Exorcisms and how they’re portrayed by Hollywood on film.

Virginia Madsen was listed as taking part, I’ve half an interest in this kind of thing anyways and so naturally I was interested and found a copy, and…

… Well, let’s just say if I’d found a copy just for Virginia Madsen I might be a tad disappointed.

Which is to say, yes, she takes part in it… Just, not for very long. At all.

Battling Darkness is a 48 minute 2013 documentary that gets at spiritual warfare; the kind that’s about demons, exorcists, theology, and psychologists and all without pretending it’s anything but framed in a Christian worldview

It opens with a premise: the “visage of Satan” all but died before The Exorcist landed in 1973, and since Linda Blair’s possession, the world’s been obsessed with evil as both spectacle and reality.From there, we get quick cuts and talking heads. Psychologists, Exorcists, Pastors, and Linda Blair herself, all asking “is what Hollywood shows is Biblical or just sensationalism at its finest?”

They trot out the usual suspects for this kind of thing: Tony Campolo, Neil Anderson, Hank Hanegraaff, plus a Vatican certified exorcist, Father Gary Thomas And yeah, they toss in psychology, ask questions about possession versus mental illness, but the answer inevitably steers back to spiritual warfare as fact, not metaphor.

The trailer promises “examined with objectivity and insight”, but the lineup makes the tone clear: this is less “balanced academic inquiry” and more “Christian voices explaining the spiritual realm.”

(if you are reading between the lines here and thinking this kind of thing is wasted on me, then you’re right)

So what does it deliver?

If you’re already inclined to believe that demons are real, it’s a tidy little package: half-hour, familiar faces talking at you (note, not to you), some clips of exorcisms, a handful of psychologists for spice and seasoning.

You’re not getting peer reviewed studies or push back from prominent secular psychiatrists, this is all about getting you confirmation.

It’s what it says it is. No surprise reveals, no ideological sleight of hand.

If you walk in expecting clinical nuance, you’ll leave bored and / or annoyed by the absence of rigorous skepticism.

If you’re deep into evangelical spirituality or curious about what Christians consider spiritual warfare, it hits the expected notes. SURPRISE!

Virginia Madsen’s input is minimal, a quick comment on how dark The Exorcist is as a film, and that’s about the only contribution she makes to the whole thing – It’s a bit bizarre she’s in it at all, but… There we go.

Worth watching? Only if this is your lane. Long enough to provoke thought, short enough not to overstay its welcome.

Just don’t mistake it for a forensic or medical investigation.

It’s faith first, questions second which is comforting if that aligns with your worldview, frustrating if not.

As you may have guessed – I’ve little time for this kind of fluff – I don’t mind more balanced approaches, but things like this only serve to reinforce a view that already exists and either way, are a complete waste of time.

Availability:

You can find it on YouTube, and other places – I’ve not found it anywhere to buy though.

Trailer:

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Prey for the Devil

Although Prey for the Devil falls very firmly on the “Virginia Madsen films I don’t really want to watch” list, I sat down to watch this one with a little bit renewed hope that it might not be as bad as it seems. Mainly because The Haunting in Connecticut had taken me by surprise, and in my mind they’re the same kind of film.

I was wrong – They aren’t the same kind of film – But, I digress.

Released in 2022, Prey for the Devil tries to put a fresh spin on the somewhat tired exorcism genre, blending the old tropes with a few new twists and a little slip of flair.

In this world, demonic possession has become so prevalent that the Catholic Church reopens schools for teaching exorcism rites. Typically, nuns aren’t permitted to perform exorcisms, let alone be trained in them, but Sister Ann (Jacqueline Byers) catches the eye of Father Quinn (Colin Salmon), who sees potential in her and agrees to abandon the old ways and train her.
But it can’t be that simple, Sister Ann’s investment in the exorcism world is personal. Her mother was possessed when she was a child, and she has never fully recovered from the trauma. It isn’t long before her quest becomes a little too personal, before you can bless some Holy Water she finds herself face-to-face with the same demon that terrorised her family years ago: quelle surprise

Virginia Madsen takes on the role of Dr. Peters, she’s a Psychiatrist who insists that most “possessions” are schizophrenia and adds an element of doubt, and perspective, to the supernatural goings on. She plays the role pretty straight, it’s sort of her Mum thing in a more professional setting. There’s a warmth to her that “gets it” when it comes to what Sister Ann is going through, and has gone through previously. It’s a small role, but she makes the most out of it and you won’t come away with any complaints about her.
Which is nice for Virginia, but what about the rest of the film?

Well. It’s… Not good. I mean. It’s – There is something in the film. I don’t actually think it’s that bad of an idea for a film, but somehow it gets lost with a lack of original thinking. It’s nearly good, but it fails so hard that it becomes hard to watch. It’s the usual stuff you’ve seen before and ultimately it lets itself down. It’s not that you’re angry at it, but you’re disappointed.

I wanted to like it. I was rooting for it, I wanted it to hit me with something that would make my jaw drop. But, it didn’t. And it could have, I know it could have. It was so close.
So. With a heavy heart, it’s hard to recommend this one just as a watch.

Availabilty:
Good. No problems finding this on DVD or Blu-Ray in whatever country you’re in it would seem. Also available on multiple streaming services depending on your location, or access to a VPN.

Trailer:

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The Last Keepers

So, The Last Keepers. Another that wasn’t exactly high on my list of films to watch when doing this Virginia Madsen watch / rewatch thing. And, I’m not sure if it’d even be on my list if it wasn’t for Mrs Madsen. No, I am sure. It wouldn’t be.

It’s not the kind of film that is trying to grab your attention either, it’s got quite a subdued presence all round. And, without meaning to sound like a broken record – I don’t know if I’d have even heard of it without Virginia Madsen.

Despite all its quietness and nonedescriptness, it’s a film you’ve seen before. Probably many years ago, and many times. It’s a “quirky girl finds out she’s actually quite special” kind of film.

See. Told you, you’d seen it.

Now. You’ve seen it before, but have you watched it recently?The Last Keepers is charming. It wins you over. It doesn’t offer you anything new and doesn’t challenge you in any way. But there is something about it that all gels together and brings you that exact same fuzzy feeling you didn’t know was missing till it gives you that hug.

The quirky teenager of The Last Keepers is Rhea Carver (Zosia Mamet). She’s an artist who has always felt out of her place in her small town high school. She lives with her reclusive (“strange”) parents, Abigail (Virginia) and John (Aidan Quinn) alongside her wise old Grandmother, Rosemarie (Olympia Dukakis).

It’s an odd life to live, but a peaceful one. Rhea is happy enough with her lot, she might not have the life of a normal teenager, but she’s happy enough. But, all that changes when she finds out she’s actually the latest in a long line of female mystics who possess ancient magical powers. Normally these powers manifest as Telekinesis, Visions or Healing, but Rhea seems to have command over all three – This insinuates that she might be “The Chosen One” of prophecy.
And that, of course, explains everything.

Rhea’s powers begin to get stronger, the family begin to realise that even within their own world that she’s displaying powers stronger and more powerful than is normal. Abigail has visions which lead her to be more protective over Rhea than she should be. There’s problems at school when her classmates realise there is something going on with Rhea which leads to accusations of her being a witch, not helped because she actually is a witch.

Rhea soon begins to feel the pressure and overwhelmed by it all, but with her family’s help and support she makes all the right choices, eventually, and embraces her destiny.

OK – So, that’s the broad strokes. There is a lot more to it than that but it’s all noise and melodrama, and you’ve seen it all before.Virginia Madsen is superb form here. I’ve said before that she does this kind of role so well. But I sometimes take for granted how well she does it. In The Last Keepers it’s on display more than most other times just how layered she can make these roles. There is a warmth and a depth to Abigail that simply shines. The internal conflict she has over wanting the best for her daughter but at the same trying to protect her family’s legacy.

The whole cast is great to be fair, and I think that is one of the things that makes this film so charming. It’s really well done, for what it is.

(Also worth a little nod to the fact she’d work with Aidan Quinn a few years later in Elementary)

Is it groundbreaking? No.

Is it as cheesy as it gets? Yes.

Can you find a reason to hate on it? Doubtful.

Is it going to give you warm fuzzy feelings? Probably.

Am I writing this with a little too much light in my soul after watching it? Definitely.

This isn’t my cup of tea, and I probably won’t watch it ever again without reason. But I won’t ever knock it.

This is no doubt a film that has flown under too many people’s radars. It deserved better.It’s hard to recommend the film as an adult, for an adult audience (as I assume most people reading this are) – BUT – If you have kids of a certain age who need to see a bit of good in the world then you can do far worse than watch this with them.

Availabilty:

Good. No problems at all finding this one on DVD. Blu-Ray is harder to find, seems like it was only relased in some countries this way and it’s also available on Amazon Prime, depending on your location and or access to a VPN.

Trailer:

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A Prairie Home Companion

A Prairie Home Companion was a “new to me” film when I sat down to watch it for this whole Virginia Madsen thing. I don’t really know why I’ve never watched it before, I missed it on release, bought it and just never got round to it.

A fun little factoid while I’m here – A Prairie Home Companion was the film just starting to get some buzz around it when I sacked off the original version of this website all those years ago. At the time of watching / writing it’s one of the last I’m doing to complete this whole puzzle. Actually getting around to watching it now was kind of full circle for me, I didn’t even plan for it to be one of the last, not on purpose, my subconscious might have had something to do with it though.
It’s the last film directed by Robert Altman, he was 80 while it was being made. The studio were so nervous about this they enlisted Paul Thomas Anderson as a backup in case things didn’t go according to plan.

The cast is amazing; Kevin Kline, Woody Harrelson, Tommy Lee Jones thrown in with Meryl Streep, Lily Tomlin and of course our heroine, Virginia Madsen – I mean – it doesn’t really get a lot better than that on paper.

But, just because something looks good on paper doesn’t make it good on screen as I’ve found out time and time again when doing this whole thing.

It’s actually a quirky little (but big) film. We follow the story about the end of an era, the final broadcast of a long running Radio Show called, A Prairie Home Companion. It’s all done in a behind the scenes kind of format. You get the very real feeling you’re watching it play out live, or one of those Netflix documentaries where they film everything. It’s quite voyeuristic in places and a delight to watch actors of this calibur do this kind of thing.

And, it’s voyeuristic with good reason. It’s kind of, sort of, based on a real radio show, called “The Prairie Home Companion”, funnily enough. The host of the radio show, Garrison Keillor, would be the writer of this film version. More than a couple of people involved with the actual show would make their way over to this fictional version of it including Garrison himself, Tim Russell and Sue Scott.Virginia Madsen plays a character who just goes by “Dangerous Woman”, though she’s widely regarded to be the actual Angel of Death. The “Dangerous Woman” moniker probably comes from her waltzing around in a trench coat and being all mysterious. Which, to be fair, she does pull off a trench coat quite well.

It’s not the Angel of Death you’re probably thinking of, not the way it’s played on screen at least. She’s a very serene figure with an ethereal presence. Almost soothing. It’s odd, there is almost no drama to her on screen despite you being painfully aware of what she represents. This is noticeable from when we first meet her in Kevin Kline’s office, to the way she enters the diner at the end of the film. In amongst the general chaos of the rest of the film it’s a unique performance that I don’t think just “anyone” could pull off. You very much get the impression that she’s heavily involved with the characters, deciding their fates, but the way she blends into the background and generally goes unnoticed unless she wants to be. Well, it’s kind of genius. Full credit to Virginia Madsen on this one, very subtle but very effective.

It’s all completely by design as well. Speaking with Jimmy Guerts for the Herald Tribune she’d explain;

“So I got to sit next to Robert Altman and Paul Thomas Anderson sometimes all day and just watch them work and listen to how he directed. Every once in a while, he’d say ‘Put in the angel!’ and I’d go in and he’d go, ‘No, no, bring her out.”

I realise I’ve been very complimentary about the film so far, and that’s because I very much did enjoy it. But I know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. I’m not even sure there’s much of a plot, really – It’s just a film about life and due to the way it’s shot, that’s what you end up watching, life.It’s a little slow, but it’s not supposed to be anything fast paced. It’s a sentimental old fool’s love letter to a dying form of art. It’s homely, it’s… Nice. For want of a better way of putting it.

And, of course it would give Virginia Madsen a chance to work with Tommy Lee Jones again (sort of, he only has a small role) after all those years back in Gotham / The Dead Can’t Lie. And, kinda odd that the role she plays here isn’t a million miles away from that role either. Funny how that happens sometimes.

Availability:

Good, not hard to find on DVD in many different languages and regions.

Gallery:

Trailer:

Red Riding Hood

Aha! An angsty, teen-driven reimagining of a classic folk tale, just what I was looking forward to when starting this whole Virginia Madsen website.

Said no one. Ever. Not even me.

This Red Riding Hood remake from 2011, directed by Catherine Hardwicke and produced by Leonardo DiCaprio, boasts a cast that isn’t exactly scraping the bottom of the barrel. Amanda Seyfried, Gary Oldman, Julie Christie, and yes, Virginia Madsen are all on board. On paper, this should be half-decent.

I don’t think I need to explain Red Riding Hood. Little girl. Red cape. Big bad wolf. Big teeth. You know the drill.

Amanda Seyfried plays the red-caped heroine before red capes were really a thing, and she’s got two brooding hunks competing for her affection: Peter (Shiloh Fernandez), the bad boy woodcutter, and Henry (Max Irons), the good boy blacksmith.

The problem? Valerie’s heart belongs to Peter, but her mom, Suzette (Virginia Madsen), has arranged for her to marry Henry. Why? Well, because her mom promised, and it’s medieval times, where arranged marriages are the norm. Also, plot.
Then, just to add more plot, their village is terrorized by a werewolf. Enter Father Solomon (Gary Oldman), the grizzled werewolf hunter, with, a giant metal elephant. No, really.

Oieeee. If all this sounds a little sardonic, it’s because… Well, it is.

No, I did not enjoy this film. In fact, I switched it off halfway through. I remember seeing reviews that compared it to Twilight, which I’d half-forgotten about until the whole thing reminded me way too much of Twilight.

(Catherine Hardwicke would also be the one resonsible for bringing us the first Twilight film, she was reportedly fired after the first one, some might think this was an attempt to take on that franchise…)

Virginia Madsen does her best here, but even she couldn’t salvage it. Her hair and makeup are… a choice. And while her acting is solid, it’s all very soap opera (as is most of the cast, to be fair). I’ve said before how often her talents are wasted, but after watching this, I now truly understand how much wastage is possible.So, would I recommend Red Riding Hood? No. Unless you’re a die-hard Virginia Madsen collector, and even then I’d ask, “Do you really need this on your shelf?”

This is one for collectors only, to be filed away and probably never watched.

Availabilty:

Good. Because nobody wants to buy it… OK – So, yeah – It’s on DVD and a Special Edition 2 Disc Blu-Ray. You won’t have problems finding it currently.

Trailer:

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Dead Rising: Watchtower

Dead Rising Watchtower is an original film from Crackle made in 2015 back when it was still a SONY thing. It’s based around the Dead Rising games from CAPCOM which was first released in 2006.

The game would have moderate success and spawn several sequels and add ons for those sequels. The first game’s protagonist, Frank West, would prove popular with audiences, being more of an everyday man than your typical gaming hero. He’s tough, gritty, grizzled, gnarly and is a photojournalist who also sports a wicked sense of humour, he’d be more relatable to most other gaming leads at the time.

Dead Rising Watchtower is not based specifically on any of the games, but instead places itself between the second and third games timeline wise.

It’s not the most original ever zombie film – Not necessarily a bad thing, I mean – There is only so much you can do with a zombie outbreak. Even the first Dead Rising game wasn’t the most original concept in the world other than its uniqueish gameplay element of being against the clock.
The characters in the film are mostly new characters for the film. The main protagonist of the first game, Frank West does feature as a supporting character but he’s not really a part of the main plot other than to provide a sort of commentary.

Virginia Madsen plays Maggie, she’s an original character for the film, although she does share some similarities to characters from the games universe. Of course, this isn’t Virginia’s first dance with Zombies, oh no. She faced off against them once before in the 1987 film, Zombie High. Well, kinda.

Can Dead Rising Watchtower fix the sins of the past and reinvigorate the world’s trust in Virginia Madsen zombie films? Can it reassure the world that all films based on video games aren’t terrible?

Well. Uhm. Erm.

Anyway…The film deals with the Zombie outbreak after it began. Internet Reporter Chase Cater (Jesse Metcalfe) alongside his Camera Operator Jordan Blair (Keegan Connor Tracy) are covering stories of people who are escaping the latest outbreak of the Zombie virus in East Mission, Oregon.

It’ll be no surprise for anyone to learn that things go wrong, the military get involved with some shady behind the scene population control stuff and it all kind of goes downhill from there.

I’ve said and or complained about films wasting Virginia Madsen’s talents before, and this one is no different. If you’ve seen the film, then you’ll know how hard this is to say without spoiling anything, and if you’ve not seen the film then thank me for this later;

Her death scene. That scene had no place in this movie. That scene should have been in a far better movie then this. That scene was both a waste of talent and a good movie scene.

Damn.

But, bonus Zombie Virginia Madsen afterwards…

But, still…

Virginia Madsen as Maggie in Dead Rising: Watchtower, now a zombie, holding hands with her daughter, who is also undead. They walk together into the open world beyond a dark warehouse, silhouetted against the daylight. In the background, an explosion erupts, sending debris flying. The scene is somber yet eerie, as the two zombies step into the light...

Bad and sad times indeed…

I say her talents are wasted in context of the spoiler, but truth be told she’s the adult in the room on this one and while none of the acting is particularly bad the main cast is made up of familiar faces from TV in similar roles to what you normally see them in, not a bad thing but not in the same league as Virginia Madsen either.

The movie itself isn’t that bad as far as films based on video games go. I mean, it’s unlikely it was ever going to be winning any awards, but the story is decent enough and fits in well with the universe it inherits from the games. It’s also fair to point out that the film can be enjoyed without any knowledge of the games, it does a good job of this.

It’s pretty easy to reccomend this if you’re a fan of Virginia Madsen, zombies and or video games, it’s not going to bore you to death and easily passes the time. There are far worse films from both genres you could be watching.

Even if you aren’t then it’s still a passable way to kill some time. And, if you do like this one then there is a sequel to be watched as well in the form of Dead Rising: Endgame. No Virginia Madsen in that one though I’m afraid…

Availability:

Good. Easy to find on DVD and Blu-Ray at the time of writing, and for cheap. Some streaming services also have to watch, rent or buy depending on your location or access to a VPN.

Gallery:

Dead Rising - Behind the Scenes 11 images

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Karen Benjamin

The Portrait

I think of all the “new to me” films I’ve watched as part of this whole thing, The Portrait was one that was pretty close to the bottom of the list.

I’m not a fan of this particular type of horror, and I could tell from the trailer what kind it was going to be. And, you know… That’s OK – I won’t ever rubbish a film just because it’s not for me, but it doesn’t make me feel any better about watching them either. Truthfully, if Virginia Madsen’s name wasn’t attached I wouldn’t entertain it. BUT – I also had The Haunting in Connecticut in mind, I thought that was going to go one way and it didn’t, so…

The Portrait isn’t classed as horror, more a psychological thriller, but it amounts to the same thing in my mind. It’s a British film from 2023 and was released straight to digital markets.

Alex (Ryan Kwanten) suffers in an accident, he survives but he remains in a pretty much catatonic state and has no real memory of his life before. He’s alive but his interaction with the world around him is minimal at best. His wife, Sofia (Natalia Cordova-Buckley) is doing her best to look after him but is struggling.

In an attempt to jog his brain and his memory back into gear she takes him back to his family home in the hopes that being there will spark, something.

Not long after they arrive she comes across a portrait in the attic painted by a long dead relative of her husband. The thing is, he’s a dead ringer for her husband and Sofia becomes more and more convinced that something else is going on here the more she stares at it.
Not long after moving in, cousin Mags (Virginia Madsen) comes calling to check in. She seems to know a lot more about the family history and lets Sofia in on a few chilling details of the man in the portrait. It turns out he was gifted, but not so much of a nice chap – In fact he was pretty much run out of town not long after the portrait in question was finished.

From there, it’s pretty much Alex getting more and more out of character, Mags getting more and more mysterious and Sofia getting more and more concerned until things escalate and, well – Yes.
There aren’t many surprises to be had from this film unfortunately.

Virginia Madsen in this, isn’t at her best. But she doesn’t have much to work with either. Mags is almost like a Scooby Doo villain in this one (and not a good one like she played in Where’s my Mummy?), you know she’s up to no good – She might as well put a sign around her neck and ring a bell. All those sly and knowing looks she gives while employing every means of avoidance she can muster. You know the one.
Did I like it? – Well. I didn’t hate it. Would I recommend it? Well. Kind of, I mean if you like this kind of film, and I know lots do, then there are far worse examples of it out there you could go with, it’s actually quite a well made film. I think for me the story lets it down mainly.

Availability:

So far it’s not had a physical release so you’ll need to purchase it digitally if you want to see it. It’s available on Amazon Prime, or check your usual service to see if they have it.

Trailer:

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The Haunting in Connecticut

They say you should never judge a book by its cover, and I should perhaps remember that more. I wasn’t looking forward to watching The Haunting in Connecticut, I like horror films but generally not “based on a true haunted house story” horror films. Maybe Virginia Madsen back in a proper horror film could change that?

The true story aspect is the reason I’d never got around to watching this one before. I bought it ages ago and filed it away and thought very little of it since.

And, I might have been a little wrong about it. Putting the disc in the player I was both happy and surprised to see the Twisted Pictures logo at the start, they’ve been responsible for a lot of films I liked. It was a good start and enough to brighten its prospects. A little.

As the story goes, Sara (Virginia Madsen) and Peter (Martin Donovan) have a sick teenage child, Matt (Kyle Gallner), he’s got cancer and they are doing everything they can to help, naturally. They want to move closer to the hospital to lessen the strain on everyone and thanks to Sara being in the right place at the right time they end up finding a property quite quickly.The family move in, they each find their rooms with Matt choosing the basement with the mysterious door. Ominous.

And, funnily enough, not long after this Matt starts to experience weirdness in the form of visions with old men and corpse featuring prominently.

They quickly learn that the house used to be a Funeral Parlour which creeps them out but not enough for them to move out, for some reason. Even though there is dying teenager with visions of literal death in the house.

I mean, it takes a lot to spook me personally but one thing I do know is that I’d be questioning my decisions roundabout then.It’s pretty much a standard house horror story from there, but if it was truly that I wouldn’t have carried on watching it. It’s an interesting, if somewhat unbelievable premise that the rest of the story tells. And, for one of these films the level of gore is quite high, eyelids being removed and the like.

As it turns out, the “true events” that the film is based on, likely isn’t that true. It was part of the “Ed and Lorraine Warren” thing that they did, many of those “events” have since been discredited one way or another.

Which I wasn’t surprised to learn to be honest. At least this film wasn’t done it the same tone / voice as the other films based upon the Warrens activities (Annabelle etc).

Going back to the film itself, Virginia Madsen once again steals a movie from her co-stars. There were quite a few scenes where she stands out. I mean, I credit her with knowing the kind of movie she was in here and she puts in a quite frankly amazing performance all the same. Not once does she miss a beat. I don’t quite know why I was so impressed with her in this one over other roles, probably because I didn’t expect a lot.
Virginia herself quite liked idea of being in the film, in an interview with Deseret News she’d say “I’ve been looking for a good horror script since ‘Candyman,’ and I’ve been reading them for years, and I just could never find one. They were all either a gorefest or a good idea but a stupid ending. None of them were really character-driven,” until Haunting. I like the film very much I get a particular kick out of scaring the hell out of people; I don’t know why. So I want people to go out and see it.”

Is this one to watch? – Well, once is probably enough for me to watch it properly. It’s worth watching as a fan of Virginia to see how well she does with what she’s got.

Haunting in Connecticut also reunites Virginia Madsen and Amanda Crew who previously worked together in the indie film Crazy Kind of Love. Virginia would also go on to work with Kyle Gallner again in the WIGS web series, Jan, but he was grateful they’d met earlier when she took him under her wing on this one, speaking with The Hollywood News he would reflect back on his time with her one this film;

“Haunting in Connecticut was amazing. It was my first lead in a studio film and Virginia Madsen made sure she took me under her wing. Like the second, I mean, I had someone come get me at the airport and bring me to her. From there on out, I was under her wing. She took care of me the whole time. I learned a lot from her.”

And, there is a Haunting in Connecticut 2, which – Isn’t really a follow up to this one, just trading in on the name. No relation to this one though other than that so don’t go thinking you’ve another to watch if you do watch this one.

Availability:

Good, not hard to find at all on DVD, Blu-Ray and on some streaming channels. Though, you might need a VPN depending on where you are in the world and what services you have available to you.

Gallery:

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Swamp Thing

The Swamp Thing TV show is, at the time of writing, Virginia Madsen’s latest foray into the DC Universe, only this time it’s of the live action flavour. Albeit a short lived one.

Originally commissioned for the short lived DC Universe VOD channel the show made it’s debut in 2019 for ten episodes. The show’s cancellation was announced before it had completed its run. So, pretty much dead on arrival. Great.

And, it’s a shame as it was actually pretty good. I’ve mentioned, several times now, how I’m a fan of DC over Marvel, in the comic book world at least, and a lot of the DC Universe shows were actually right up my street, Titans more than any of the others, but, yeah. What could have been.
The comic book Swamp Thing is a character that has been around since 1971, a creation of Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson. Len Wein would probably be more famous as the co-creator of Wolverine than Swamp Thing in case you’re thinking you know the name.

The TV version of the show follows Abby Arcane (Crystal Reed) as she returns home to Louisiana to investigate a virus that seems to be originating in a swamp. A scientist who is also on the case, Alec Holland (Andy Bean), dies tragically but Abby suspects things aren’t what they first appear to be. And she’d be right, funnily enough. Alec, as it turns out has become the titular Swamp Thing, kind of. His memories have at least.

Ohhhhhhhhhh. It’s a comic thing – You have to watch it so I don’t have to go all explain and get myself in a twist trying to do it justice and not spoil anything at the same time.

Virginia Madsen plays Maria Sunderland, a renamed for the TV show character, she’s better known as Bubbles Sunderland in the comic world. Thankfully, she also gets to show off her talents in this one, even if you aren’t a fan of the show itself and just want a taste of what Virginia offered then the fifth episode, “Drive All Night” is the one to watch.
We already know the show is dead in the water, well, swamp – But is it worth a watch?

Well. Yeah. I’d say so – Most of the events are wrapped up nicely, just remember to switch it off when the end credits roll…

Plus, there is always the chance with these things that the characters / actors will move on even if the show doesn’t, look at Constantine and The Legends of Tomorrow, and more recently the Dead Boy Detectives from the equally cancelled DC Universe project Doom Patrol who have found their way into the Netflix show of the same name as sort of spin off of their Sandman universe.

Availability:

Good, good – Not hard to find on DVD or Blu-Ray.

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Candyman (2021)

But wait! I hear you scream. “Virginia Madsen wasn’t in the new Candyman film!” you continue.

Yes, yes I know she wasn’t, but at the same time she technically is and all the other Virginia Madsen filmography pages include it so I am as well.

The 2021 version of Candyman is a sequel, reboot and or continuation of the original 1992 film. Once again the legend of the Candyman is investigated, this time by a young artist by the name of Anthony McCoy (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II). He eventually comes up with an art piece for his exhibition entitled “Say My Name”, a reference to the Candyman legend.

This causes two art critics at the exhibit to start messing around and being clever and they inadvertently summon the Candyman back into existence, but this isn’t Daniel Robitaille, this is Sherman Fields (Michael Hargrove), another young man accused of a crime and unduly punished for it.

As the killing and mystery surrounding them grow deeper, so does Anthony’s curiosity of Candyman, he begins to dig deeper and eventually ends up looking into the events of the original Candyman movie, specifically Helen Lyle.

And this is where Virginia Madsen does appear, well, her voice at least – Anthony takes a file from the local library which has all the details of Helen Lyle and her investigation years before. Part of that file includes her original audio tapes, and there it is. Virginia Madsen’s voice in the new Candyman film.

Tadah!

It’s a stretch, I know – But like I said, everyone else is doing it – So…

I obviously would not or could not recommend this film based on Virginia Madsen’s role, and her acting here is literally something we’ve seen her do before. So, yeah. It is what it is here.

If you do want to check it out for this alone then the scene takes place at about 39 minutes into the movie in the movie.
The film itself? – Well – Yeah, if you liked the original film then you should get along with this one just fine. It hammers it’s point home with the least subtle brick you can imagine, but it’s worth a watch all the same. It’s a good continuation of the Candyman mythos and I hope they’ll make more going forward.

Availability:

Good, it’s relatively new and can be picked up on DVD and Blu-Ray quite easily.

Trailer:

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Candyman (2021)